SPOTLIGHT ON THE GREAT WORLD RELIGIONS

Number 1 - Mormonism (aka The Church of Latter-Day Saints) In 1823, a 17 year old guy called Joe Smith received a surprise visit at home from the angel Moroni. Moroni led Joe to a nearby hill and pointed out some gold plates and other similar artifacts. Moroni told Joe that these things had been buried there for 400 years, and that the gold plates contained hieroglyphs which in turn contained important religious records. Moroni would not, however, let Joe get his hands on the plates for another four years, during which Joe passed the time making a tidy sum in gold-prospecting. Eventually, Moroni allowed Joe to have the plates but strictly forbade him to show them to anyone else - though in due course a handful of Joe's pals claimed that they'd seen the plates during religious visions. Although the plates bore previously unseen hieroglyphics, it turned out that fortunately Joe had the power to translate them. Even more fortunately, the result turned out to be the Book of Mormon in which God set out the rules for his followers, using his faithfull servant Joe as the earthly intermediary. One of the rules was that Joe was in charge of the new religion. Other miscellaneous rules were that Mormons should abstain from tobacco, coffee, tea and alcohol, which coincidentally were all things that Joe didn't indulge in. Joe's authority as leader received timely boosts from time to time when the likes of John the Baptist and St John the Divine turned up to visit him - usually in the small hours when there was no-one else around. Once Mormonism was up and running it went from strength to strength. Among the regular visitors to the first Mormon Temple were the likes of Moses, Elijah and Elias from the Old Testament, and (as a regular Friday-nighter) Jesus himself from the New. A happy motif which recurs again and again in this type of religion is God's apparent will that the leader can have more than one wife, and Joe religiously practised polygamy. Not all was happy within the community however, and one night, apparently after a misunderstanding about a young woman, other members of the community took Joe out, beat him up and tarred and feathered him. These circumstances, allied to another misunderstanding over mormon bank accounts, made life in the original community a bit too hot for Joe and his close pals, and they moved to Missouri, which Joe said he'd been told in a revelation was 'Zion', the place they were to wait for the second coming of Jesus. Mormons turned up in 'Zion' in such numbers that the occupants of the place formerly known as Missouri became alarmed and there was constant friction leading to armed conflicts. Joe was arrested but escaped from custody shortly before he was due to be executed. He remained as a fugitive from Missouri law for the rest of his life. He and his followers moved to Illinois and he actually announced that he was running for the presidency of the USA in 1844. However, he continued to be plagued by the narow-minded approach of others towards his 'plural marriage' arrangements. Apparently some who had no objections to polygamy in principle, became agitated when members of the 'plurality' turned out to be their own wives. He found his way back into custody in the local jail in relation to a charge of treason - this time when the mob turned up there was no happy ending. Joe shot three of the mob but they eventually killed him. Then a guy called Brigham Young took over, having been nominated by Joe and appointed by God, and Mormonism continued to flourish. As well it might, since it is so obviously true